World Sleep Day: Significance, meaning and simple tricks to get a sound sleep

World Sleep Day: Significance, meaning and simple tricks to get a sound sleep

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“I love sleep. My life has the tendency to fall apart when I'm awake, you know?” American story writer Ernest Hemingway once said. Good sleep is perhaps one of the most important things for a healthy lifestyle. Did you know sleeplessness threatens the health and quality of life of about 45 per cent of the world's population?

Observed every year on the Friday before Spring Vernal Equinox, World Sleep Day marks the celebration of the benefits of ample and good sleep. Started in 2008, World Sleep Society, formerly known as World Association of Sleep Medicine (WASM), organised an event to help draw attention to the burden of sleep problems and their medical, educational, and social aspects, and to promote the prevention and management of sleep disorders.

The goal was to bring sleep healthcare providers on one platform to discuss the importance of sleep in life. Hosted by World Sleep Society (WSS), a nonprofit organisation based in the United States, the first attendees of World Sleep Day were Liborio Parrino, MD, Associate Professor of Neurology at Parma University, Italy and Antonio Culebras, MD, Professor of Neurology, Upstate Medical University, and Consultant, The Sleep Center, Community General Hospital, Syracuse, New York, USA.

The annual event is also a call to action on important issues related to sleep, including medicine, education, social aspects and driving. This year’s theme is ‘Healthy Sleep, Healthy Aging’. The notion that kids should be allowed more sleep and adults shouldn’t needs to change. As people grow older, it is much more important for every individual to get at least eight hours of undisturbed sleep.

If you’re having difficulty sleeping, meditation and relaxing before bed-time are some of the best ways to calm your mind. Creating a stress-free bedroom environment is also necessary. Cut your screen time before bed. Choose your mattress and pillows wisely to not let your back or neck hurt. A good sleeping habit includes maintaining the natural curve of your spine and aligning your neck, back and hips when lying down.

Ensure that the room is clean, quiet and free from noise, rodents or bad odour. Stick to a sleep schedule.

After all, as Homer said: “There is a time for many words, and there is also a time for sleep.”

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